I am a historical film director in the entertainment industry.

"Okay, boss, I'll pass on this message first thing tomorrow morning and finalize the time and details of the celebration banquet as soon as possible," Xing Aina replied quickly, her tone full of enthusiasm.

Cheng Sheng paused for a moment, then asked, "By the way, Sister Aina, is Director Ning Hao's 'Crazy Racer' almost finished filming?"

“That’s right. Filming for Crazy Racer is going very smoothly and is almost finished. We should be able to wrap up filming next month,” Xing Aina replied quickly, showing that she was very familiar with the company’s project progress.

"Will it be able to be released during the National Day holiday?" Cheng Sheng asked again, his tone filled with anticipation.

Upon hearing this, Xing Aina's tone immediately became hesitant, and she quickly advised, "Boss, are you planning to release this movie during the National Day holiday? Isn't that too risky? There are several blockbusters releasing during this year's National Day holiday. Although 'Crazy Racer' is directed by Ning Hao, it may not be able to compete with those established productions and foreign blockbusters!"

"What, you don't believe in your lover's abilities?" Cheng Sheng smiled, his tone teasing, and then slowly said, "I spoke with Master Han on the phone a couple of days ago and already know the lineup for this year's National Day film season, which includes 'Triangle,' '200 Pounds Beauty,' 'Taxi 4,' and 'Misguided.'"

Cheng Sheng recalled what Master Han had said back then, and still felt a pang of emotion—this year's National Day film season was truly dismal.

Among the domestically produced films, only "Triangle" was a major contender; the rest were all imported foreign films: "200 Pounds Beauty" was a South Korean film, "Taxi 4" was a French action comedy, and "Misguided" was a German film.

When Cheng Sheng learned of this lineup, he was completely stunned.

It's fair to say that this year's National Day film season was completely dominated by foreign films, and it was even privately referred to by industry insiders as the "worst National Day film season in history."

He really didn't want to see foreign films dominating such an important period as the National Day holiday, and he didn't want foreigners to laugh at Chinese films for being inferior, with even his own country's National Day holiday becoming a stage for foreigners.

If the filming schedule of "Zheng He's Voyages to the West" could be kept up, Cheng Sheng even wanted to release this blockbuster he directed during the National Day holiday. Unfortunately, the filming of this movie was difficult and the cycle was long, so it was impossible to meet the National Day holiday schedule. He could only settle for second best and pin his hopes on Ning Hao's "Crazy Racer".

“Boss, it’s not that I don’t believe in Haozi’s abilities,” Xing Aina quickly explained, her voice full of worry. “I’m just worried about the timeline! Filming wraps up next month, and by then it’ll be almost September. There’s still post-production editing, special effects, and submission for censorship. Just that censorship process alone will take at least a month or two. And that doesn’t even include the time for promotion and marketing. We simply won’t be able to make it to the National Day holiday!”

“I understand your concerns, but don’t worry,” Cheng Sheng said firmly. “As long as we can finish post-production before National Day, I will discuss the censorship with Han Sanye. With him involved, the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television will give us face, and it definitely won’t delay the National Day release date. As for publicity, you can arrange for the company’s publicity team to cooperate with the crew to carry out comprehensive publicity and warm up the audience in advance tomorrow.”

In Cheng Sheng's view, with the connection of Master Han, the review process was actually the simplest—Master Han held a pivotal position in the industry, and as long as he spoke up, the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television would certainly speed up the review process accordingly and would not deliberately make things difficult.

"Since the boss has said so, I will start working immediately tomorrow and do my best to ensure that the movie can be released on time!" Seeing that Cheng Sheng's attitude was firm and he was very confident, Xing Aina stopped objecting and replied firmly.

"Okay, thank you for your hard work, Sister Aina." Cheng Sheng's voice was a little tired as he forced himself to endure the tingling sensation in his body and said, "If there's nothing else, I'll hang up now. I'm so sleepy, I have to get up early to film tomorrow."

"Okay, boss, I'll do as you say." Xing Aina said and hung up the phone. Cheng Sheng casually tossed his phone onto the bedside table and turned to look at Li Xiaoran beside him—at this moment, Li Xiaoran was gently circling his chest, her eyes charming and teasing.

Cheng Sheng's eyes instantly turned red, and his voice was hoarse with doting affection: "Sister Xiaoran, has anyone ever told you that you can be really annoying sometimes!"

"Tch, do you dare hit me?" Li Xiaoran chuckled, her tone full of provocation.

"Well, you've gotten bolder now. Do you think you can turn things around just because someone's helping you?" Cheng Sheng saw through Li Xiaoran's thoughts at a glance and chuckled.

"Hmph!" Li Xiaoran seemed a little guilty and snorted coldly.

She recalled how she and her friends had played cards together before but hadn't won, which made her feel even more uncertain.

But I can't be weak in terms of presence; I am the Queen.

Cheng Sheng stopped talking and reached for the blanket... Soon after, Li Xiaoran's shy, pleading voice could be heard from inside the room...

……

The news that the premiere of "Princess Pingyang Zhao" achieved a viewership rating of over 2 spread throughout the film and television industry on the same day, shocking countless people in the industry.

It's worth noting that before Cheng Sheng popularized historical dramas, many film and television companies had followed suit and produced historical works, but none of them managed to break the 1% viewership rating mark on their premiere. Most hovered around 0.5%, and many even flopped on their premiere.

But now, things are different. Cheng Sheng's "Princess Pingyang Zhao" broke 2 on its first day of broadcast. Such a result can be described as a dimensional attack, which directly broke the defenses of many producers who followed the trend.

Why is it that Cheng Sheng's historical films can make a lot of money and win awards, and the TV series produced by his company can break viewership records, while their TV series can't?
This has made many people realize one thing, and they have all come to a clear understanding: Shengli Film and Television Company is absolutely the best in the industry when it comes to the production of historical films and television works. Whether it is the respect for history, the polishing of the plot, or the quality of production, it far surpasses other companies and is simply beyond the reach of ordinary production teams.

In the following days, the ratings for "Princess Pingyang Zhao" soared, with an unbelievable speed: on the second day of its premiere, the ratings rose to 2.27; on the third day, it broke through 3; on the fourth day, it soared to 5; and on the fifth day, the ratings broke through 8, setting a new ratings record for historical dramas this year.

This drama has only 25 episodes in total, and 10 episodes have been broadcast in just five days. The plot is almost halfway through, but the ratings have not only not dropped, but have continued to break new records.

Many industry experts had previously predicted whether the show's ratings would break 10, but now it seems there's no need to guess—breaking 10 is a sure thing, and it might even set a new record. (End of Chapter)